Process of treating adhesive binders.



1. 11. McLAURIN. PROCESS OF TREATING ADHESIVE BINDBRS,

APPLIOATJQN FILED JUNE 10, 1909.

954,644. Patented Apr. 12, 1910.

Fig 1 mvmron WIT/459858:

6W ATTORNEY fit) JAMES D. MOLAURIN,

or NEW roux, N. Y.

PROCESS OF TREATING ADHESIVE BINDERSi Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 10, 190B.

' Patented Apr. 1?, 1910. Serial No. 501,432.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES J), MCLAURIN, u suhjed. of Kin 1 Edward VII of Great Britain, now resi iug in New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, u'liose posi-otlice address is 154 Nossuu street, New York, N. Y.,) have invented at certain new and useful Process of 'lrenting Adhesive Binders, of which the following is at full, clear, and exact descrip tion, whereby any one skilled in the art may make and use the some.

The invention relates to the process or method of treating adhesive material or materials, to Which an adhesive has been ap plied, in such manner, that said adhesive materials will be thoroughly and uniformly softened, in order to properly attach the material and secure the proper binding effect of the adhesive;

In carrying out the process, the material bearing the adhesive, together with the adhesive is subjected to a warm moist vapor in such manner that the life and body 0 the gum or adhesive is not destroyed or diminished and the material bearing the ad hesive is at the same time partially di estcd and assumes such form, that it will become uniformly softened and absorbent, thus permitting the adhesive to act with gradual and uniform drying effect.

' It has been found, in attempting to attuch labels or other binders coated with an adhesive, that the application of water tends to remove a portion of the adhesive and ordinarily cannot be used to such an extent as will properly reduce the character of the material bearing the adhesive. For instance, where labels, corner-stays, veneers,

or like materials coatedlsvithadhesives are to be applied, it is common practice to draw the surface over zi moistennlfi-pad or immerse the materials to a greater or less extent in a. fluid. Where such materials are passed over a moistening pod, a great pereentage of the um is removed by the ab rasive action 0 the moiste'ner in conjunetion with the'fiuid used. When the materials are immersed, a. great ercentagc of the gum is dissolved and t e bath thus causes the exterior portion ofthe mater'al' to become gummed and often dest oys its appearance and usefulness.

In addition to the above disadvanta es of present methods, it is almost im ossi le to moisten materials of oonsitierab e body so ected to the softening notion.

that the adhesive, in drying, will dry uniformly with the material, which it binds togethcr. The result is mg of the material, to say nothing of the loss of time required in applying such materiuls in their various users. For instance, in seulinr packages and plucing cori1er-stays upon boxes, in setting veneers and in varione other branches of the arts, where adhesives are used, a considerable pressure must be brought to bear upon the material after its adhesive has been moistened and this pressure must be maintained until the gum has thoroughly set. Otherwise, the line ual tensions due to the comparatively dry abel and over-moistened um will cause a buckling and crimping o. the material which destroys the holding qualities of the gum.

The present process is designed to over come these objections, so far as ossiblc, by making the matcrial,--With its adhesive, umforml soft and absorbent so that, when placed in contact with (mother material, it will dry out gradually iind prevent uneven tensions. 7

Thematcrial with its adhesive is subjected to a jet or spray of heated v11 01', for a. suflicicnt period, to soften both he gum and the material, to such an extent, that when applied tonnother material, the gum will adhere and a. slight pressure will smooth the naterial'into proper position, where it. will dry gradually and uniformly.

Various devices may be used for carrying out the process depending upon the character of the material which 151.0 be sub; For instance, in treating labels of varying sizes and character, said labels are prcfcrabl placed upon a perforated screen througi which is rojccted a hot moist vapor such as steam. gllfil'l an arrangement is diagrmnmatically illustrated in Figure 1, where a rep resents a moistenin box, into which steam is projected throng a tube 6, and passes out through a per oruted cover a. The hi bels d, are placed with the gum side down upon the perforated top and preferably held in place under light-pressure by u perfm rated retainer e. The moist steam passiu' through the covertgradually softens the at hesive and the material to which it is a ilied and renders the labels perfectly flexi- Ie and uniformly moist wit out removing any appreciable percr image of the gum. Ve-

a curling and cracknet boards and similar materials may, in the same way, be subjected to the action of the steam as illustrated in Fi 2. In such case, however, the material being of considerable thickness and Weight, is preferably subjected directly to the action of the steam, as in a receptacle f, provided with a retain ing cover g, the steam bein admitted to the receptacle through an in et 7), passes up about the strip or strips of veneer card and raduall softens the adhesive and the card. f the material is in the form of a roll of gummed tape, said tape may be passed through a similar digesting apparatus illustrated in diagram at Fig. 3.

In treating box-stays, the moist steam may be introduced through clamp members as illustrated in Fig. 4, or the hinders may be first passed through a moistcning box, where they will be subjected to the direct action of the steam for a period sul icicnt to properly reduce the gum and material from which the box-stay is made.

The process is particularly advantageous in conjunction with the treatment of gummed papers or fibrous materials. As is well known. these materials are formed from fibrous substances which are first digested and then formed into sheets or webs and solidified in the ordinary methods of paper manufacture, then covered with an adhesive; which is completely dried out. By subjccting such materials with the adhesive to the action of steam, the gum is rendered soft and pliable and the entire material is partially digested so that it will conform tOi any desired shape of the material to which it is applied. The d1 estlon being gradual the materials at ma e uniformly soft an absorbent and t us permit the adhesive to permeate the material. The dryin of the gum and material is therefore gra ual and uniform. Obviously various forms of devices might be utilized for effecting the result in any specific instance, but the process of preparing the adhesive binders consists of sub ccting them to the direct action of steam and thereby partially digesting the material and softening the gum.

What I claim my invention and desire I to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The process of treatin Y adhesive binders which consists in subjecting the bind ing material and its adhesive to the direct; action of a hot moist vapor, thereby reducing said material to a condition of uniform moisture.

2. The process of treating adhesive bind ers which consists in subjecting the binding material and its adhesive to the direct action of a hot moist vapor, thereby reducing the material without removing any oi": the ad hesive.

3. The process of treating adhesive binders which consists in subjecting said bindcrs bearing an adhesive material while dry to the direct action of a hot moist vapor, thereby reducing the material without rcmoving any ofits substance.

JAMES J). MCLAURIN.

Witnesses:

JOHN A, Morison, Gnonon GOODSIR, Jr. 

